We had a lively Zoom meeting last Thursday with over 30 Rotarians attending. It sure isn’t like being at the clubhouse together, but there is still a lot of laughter and sharing of stories. It is so nice to see your faces and hear your voices. There was a lot of club news, then Tory Paxson gave us a snapshot view of the Botanical Garden’s Drive Thru Gardens Aglow. Did you know they have hung over 650,000 lights, have twelve lighted sculptures and a magical lighted tunnel, it is not to be missed? Tory said she is so proud of her co-workers because they could “pivot” during these pandemic times. Sounds like our club; we are still getting so much done. No business as usual, nothing is the same, but we’re getting a lot done and having fun doing it.

Join us this Thursday at 6 p.m. via Zoom. Pauline Dion from Boothbay Sea and Science Center will be taking us for a virtual tour of the seaweed growing tank at the clubhouse. She will explain the process and how her program is positively impacting young people. The program, along with the seaweed, is growing. It is now in many more schools, 13, if I remember right. We’ll still have time to visit, share stories and chat.

Join us on Thursday, Dec. 17 for our first (and hopefully last) Zoom Christmas Party. Wear your best ugly sweater or hat. Decorate your Zoom background. We’ve come up with two contests, but need more. One is “Worse Joke” the other is “Worse Cocktail.” Be creative and invent a horrible mix. Remember, this is virtual, no one will really be drinking it. Please, if you have any ideas for games or holiday cheer, please email me, ifowle50@gmail.com As Vice President Tory says “What happens on Zoom stays on Zoom.”

The $10,000 District Food Insecurity Grant is making an impact during this time. John Welsh is going to update us on it this week. Also, last week a team of Rotarians delivered 88 20-pound boxes of food around the peninsula. Thank you Vic, Thom and Monica, Jim Herbold, Jeff, Rick Mitterling, Bob Pike and Judi White and others for taking time for this project. I heard it was a lot of fun, especially for Bob Pike.

Laurie and Debbie say the Rotary Barn will be open Saturdays 8:30-11 a.m. until Dec. 19. It will reopen early April (hopefully). So only two Saturdays to get your holiday shopping finished. If we don’t have it at the Rotary Barn you don’t need or want it. There will be no more pick-ups or donation drop offs after this Thursday, Dec. 10 until sometime next year.

As Laurie so appropriately said “It has been a fantastic year” at the barn. She and Debbie want to say a big thank you to all the volunteers. We all want to say a big thank you to Laurie and Debbie who had the idea and have put so much time and love into this “fantastic” project. The success of the barn has definitely been a highlight of this challenging year.

Mike Thompson reports the Barn Addition Project has now raised $7,350.00. He estimates it will take about $10,000 to build. If you want to donate to this project send a check to BBH Rotary Club, P.O. Box 518, BBH, ME 04538. Please write “Barn Addition” in the memo.

The Lighthouse at Pinkham’s has raised $178.00, not the more optimistic figure I reported last week. It has also been a beautiful advertisement for our club and Rotary in general. But, this is just a start. We are planning another coin collection sculpture. This one, a coffee cup at Brisetto’s Coffee Shop, right in beautiful downtown Boothbay Harbor.

John Hochstein’s Spain/Boothbay Friendship Committee continues to meet with Marcus Packard’s club in Spain. The Portsmouth club is joining them now and their point person is also named Marcus. They are planning another Zoom meeting this Friday at 2:30 p.m. Email John at jhoch730@gmail.com for more info. There will be visitor exchanges once we can travel.

The Visioning Committee “Appreciative Inquiry” interviews are going well. Cathy Fisher and Margi Spratt developed an interview tool. They are using it to identify factors that contribute to food security with about 20 local people over the next few weeks. This has been a long term Rotary Club project; thank you so much Cathy and Margi for making it happen. We will be sharing this info with local organizations. This data should help pinpoint ways to be more effective with projects around food insecurity.

Your board of directors will be meeting Monday, Dec. 14 at 5 p.m. Let me know if you want a Zoom invite or have anything to discuss. Your BOD already donated via email to The District 7780 E-Club Wabanaki Tribal Elders Project. There are 750 elders in the Wabanaki Community. The E-Club project collected donations across the district to donate fun and useful items to these elders. We were so happy to be part of this project. The E-club was started last year by our own Marty Helman and others. Remember how controversial this was, E-Club! Who will do this, now we are all e-clubs.

Hope to see you Thursday on Zoom or Saturday at the Barn.